Means of escape in case of fire
for people with disabilities
Introduction
A considerable effort is being made by the Council to make its buildings,
particularly school premises, fully accessible to staff and others with disabilities.
Periodically, particularly when modifications to premises are being planned, it is
necessary to review evacuation measures. As more premises have their upper
floors accessible to all, the question of safe and correct evacuation measures for
people with disabilities arises, in particular the use of "Evac chairs".
Evacuation plans
Each building should have an evacuation plan. This is a requirement of the Fire
Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997. The plan should include the action to
be taken by staff in the event of fire, the evacuation procedure and the
arrangements for calling the Fire Brigade. The plan must also take account that
some evacuees might have mobility or other disabilities. Some users of the
building might have known disabilities.
Refuges
An Evacuation Plan should state that lifts without an independent power supply
(i.e. lifts which are not designated as ‘evacuation lifts’) should not be used in case
of emergency. Evacuation of disabled people therefore depends on the use of
‘refuges’ which are temporarily safe spaces for disabled persons to await
assistance for their evacuation. Refuges are separated from a fire by fireresisting construction and provided with a safe route to a staircase or other fire
exit. An example of a suitable refuge is a landing at the top of a staircase that is
large enough for a wheelchair user to wait without obstructing the route of escape
for those people that can use the stairs unaided. Advice on the design of refuges
is contained in British Standard 5588: Part 8 - Code of Practice for Means of
Escape for Disabled People (published in 1999).
Evacuation procedure
Refuges are relatively safe waiting areas for short periods. They are not areas
where people with disabilities should be left alone indefinitely until rescued by the
Fire Brigade.
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Positive planning for evacuation is required. Agreed procedures should be
confirmed by written instructions to staff. Advice on evacuation procedures for
people with disabilities is given in the attached appendix which is an extract from
British Standard 5588:Part 8.
Use of Evac chairs
Advice on techniques for the evacuation of people with disabilities down (or up)
stairs is given in the attached appendix. Equipment for this purpose is
commercially available. "Evac chairs" are an established product, but premises
managers should be aware that they are only one in a range of possible solutions
to the evacuation of people with mobility or other disabilities. In certain
circumstances, for example in a two storey building with only one person with
disabilities on the first floor, motorised stair climbers of the kind sometimes
provided to assist school pupils with mobility disabilities can be successfully used
to evacuate.
If Evac chairs are provided and their use is part of the Evacuation Plan, premises
managers should be aware that it is essential to have a sufficient number of
people trained in their use, that such training is an ongoing issue and not a "one
off", and that a regular maintenance programme should be set up for the
equipment.
Evac chairs should not normally be used in evacuation drills by the mobility
impaired person, although those trained should regularly practice getting an Evac
chair downstairs with a load approximating the weight of the person. Practices
should take account of the possibility that on the day of an emergency a person
with disabilities might be visiting the upper floors who is of a quite different weight
to known disabled occupants.
Further advice
Further advice, on the use of Evac chairs and on fire prevention and evacuation
can be obtained from:
Essex County Council’s Central Health and Safety Team, 01245-430405
Hazel Salih, Health and Safety Services Manager (Schools) 01245-436870
Gerald Lucy (Building and Safety Legislation Officer), ECC Asset
Management 01245-435521
Fire Prevention Officers at your nearest Essex County Fire and
Rescue Service Community Command HQ.
Note: Local fire crews from Essex Fire and Rescue Service sometimes provide
well-intentioned advice that is not entirely in accordance with Fire Service
policies, and this has caused some confusion in the past. A Brigade Service
Order has recently gone out to all fire stations in Essex, and Fire Prevention
Officers (FPOs) will refer to this in giving consistent advice informed by their
specialist fire prevention training. The Order re-emphasises the unacceptability of
leaving mobility impaired persons in a refuge until the fire service arrives.
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Extract from British Standard 5588
Fire precautions in the design, construction and
use of buildings
Part 8: Code of practice for means of
escape for disabled people
13
Advice to management on procedures in case of fire
Evacuation procedures should be pre-planned by persons having control of
buildings in consultation with the relevant licensing authorities. Planning should
take account of the needs of all occupants. It is essential to identify the needs of
disabled people and to make proper arrangements for their assistance.
Staff training and knowledge of the implementation of procedures are vital parts
of an effective evacuation programme. All staff, whether temporary or permanent,
who are to be involved in the implementation of evacuation procedures require
training from a competent person who is aware of the differing needs of people.
Agreed procedures should be confirmed by written instructions to staff.
Implementation of procedures should be tested at least once, but preferably
twice, in each twelve month period and any improvements to the management of
evacuation should be reflected in formal amendments to the written instructions.
A practice fire drill, in which people who require help are assisted to a place of
safety, should be carried out at least once a year and should be both horizontal
and vertical. If members of the public are to be on the premises during the
practice, the fire brigade should be informed of the intention to carry out the drill
and asked to co-operate in the exercise. A report recording the findings of the drill
should be prepared and circulated to members of staff. Conclusions reached from
the experience that would improve easy and clear understanding of escape
instructions and signage and the process of evacuation should be incorporated in
a revision to the written instructions.
It is neither possible nor desirable for this standard to recommend which
procedure should be adopted in any particular circumstances. Circumstances will
vary as to the needs of disabled people and whether their relationship with the
building management is a continuing or transient one. For example in workplaces
all employees should have appropriate training in evacuation procedures.
However in shops, hotels and other places of assembly open to the public the
advantages of such a relationship will not exist to the same extent and employees
will require additional training to assist the public in an evacuation.
In buildings in which there is overnight occupancy, management should
encourage those who feel they require assistance in an evacuation to make
themselves known during check-in procedures. This is particularly important in
premises in which people sleep, for instance in hotels.
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Normally the number of disabled people requiring assistance in an evacuation of
an assembly building is likely to be small, particularly where a back stage area is
concerned. However, in the event of a large group of disabled people attending
an event, it is sensible that the organisers of the group should discuss emergency
evacuation arrangements with the management of the building.
Evacuation procedures for disabled people should start immediately a fire is
detected in the building. However, in buildings where a two-stage fire alarm
system is used in conjunction with a phased or partial evacuation, consideration
should be given to the evacuation of disabled people in the building on the
sounding of the initial alert. The first phase of evacuation may initially be confined
to the movement to a suitable refuge of those immediately at risk. Whether
disabled people in such areas should remain in refuges, or should be evacuated
to a place of safety, will depend on the circumstances at the time of the fire.
When the disabled people have reached the safety of a refuge prior to vertical
movement, it will be necessary to ensure that they do not obstruct the movement
of others.
When planning fire procedures it should be recognised that phasing vertical
movement may be necessary for a number of reasons, for example:
a) where the need to evacuate a storey is urgent, and there are not
enough people available to assist those disabled people requiring
assistance;
b) where the physical effort required dictates a need for respite during the
evacuation;
c) where obstruction to other occupants of the building makes it necessary
to leave the stairway for a short time.
During an evacuation some disabled people will temporarily rest in refuges while
waiting for help to move from the refuge to a final exit and safety. In this event
there are three essential communication requirements.
Those members of the building management who are organising the evacuation
of the building need to know:
1) how many disabled people there are;
2) the nature of their disabilities; and
3) the refuge or refuges in which they are located.
The disabled people in each refuge need to be assured that their presence there
is known to the building management. In order to avoid anxiety and confusion, the
disabled people in each refuge need to be kept informed of the situation and told
about the action that building management is taking in order to effect their safe
evacuation.
To meet these needs there has to be a system of two-way communication
between those people who are temporarily waiting in each refuge and those
members of the building management who are organising the evacuation of the
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building. The two-way communication system needs to be readily operated by,
and comprehensible to, disabled people.
14
Techniques for the evacuation of disabled people down (or up)
stairways
In a fire some disabled people may need assistance to reach a final exit.
Visually impaired people can best be guided on level surfaces by allowing them to
take a trained helper's arm and follow the helper. On stairways the helper should
descend first and the visually impaired person follow with a hand on the helper's
shoulder. If a visually impaired person is accompanied by a guide dog, the
person should be asked how best he/she can be helped. Some guide dogs may
follow on their owner's command but, generally, if a helper is leading a visually
impaired person, the guide dog should be held by the leash, rather than the
harness.
Whilst many disabled people will be able to descend (or ascend) a stairway,
possibly with assistance, others will need to be carried; it is generally preferable
for a wheelchair bound person to be carried in their own chair.
Management should ensure that staff designated to help disabled people in the
event of fire are fully trained in the techniques of helping to evacuate such people.
16
Examples of fire plan strategies
16.2
Buildings without evacuation lifts
The recommended evacuation sequence is as follows.
a) On hearing the alarm, disabled people requiring assistance should
move or be directed to the nearest refuge.
b) The designated member of staff, for example a Fire Marshall, after
completing their evacuation/search procedure, proceeds to the refuge.
c) The disabled people are assisted down the stairway towards the final
exit level (see 14 above).
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